


The Coat Thief

by Im_not_gay_well_I_am



Category: Sherlock (TV)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-06-23
Updated: 2013-06-23
Packaged: 2017-12-15 22:38:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 872
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/854779
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Im_not_gay_well_I_am/pseuds/Im_not_gay_well_I_am
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A short story in which Sherlock's coat is taken.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Coat Thief

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Martin Freeman (someone mentioned that it looked like Sherlock's coat, which sent my brain cogs on overload)](https://archiveofourown.org/external_works/23712) by Photograph. 



> I'm going to write a second part: see end notes.

Sherlock stalked into 221b, hung his coat in the hallway and headed towards the living room. “John, I’m back”. The doctor popped his head round the kitchen door frame.  
“Hey” he smiled at the detective “Bad day?”  
“Ugggh, they’re all morons. Even Lestrade was being a pain today. It’s just so obvious! But no! Just because their silly little minds can’t comprehend the idea....Sorry” He looked up at John realising he was nearly shouting “How was your day?”  
“After you sent me off on that wild goose chase...”  
“Oh yes! What did you find?”  
“Notes are on the desk, I’m just going to pop out. I’ll be back soon” Sherlock however was already curled up on the sofa looking through John’s very detailed notes. John found it easier to write everything he saw and let the detective decide the important bits. Sherlock just grunted his acknowledgement; he wouldn’t even notice John was gone. Sherlock heard John leave the living room and pause for a moment in the hallway and thought nothing further until he decided to follow up an address in John notes. He retraced John’s path into the hallway his hand reaching out for his coat, a reflexive kind of motion until he touched air. That brought Sherlock back to reality; he had definitely hung his coat there. There was no doubt about that, the question he was asking himself was why did John take his coat when his own was right there? Sherlock stood for a moment puzzled but decided it would be best to ignore it, which meant not going out because John would know that he knew, because he always took his coat. He read the address again and decided to go tomorrow morning and he could take John along, it was always better with an assistant.

***

John pulled the detective’s coat around him, tighter against the wind and inhaled the smell that he had become so familiar with only to have it torn away from him. But after three years here it was again. John didn’t really remember how he had coped with Sherlock’s death and those long three years, not very well it seemed. With all the psychiatrist visits and becoming a recluse, yet he had slowly begun to accept the man’s death. Start taking cases again, although he was never as good as Sherlock it often felt as though Sherlock was there beside him pointing out the ‘obvious’. The psychiatrist seemed worried about that little habit. Sherlock had to have the last word though it seemed, turning up one day at 221b, effectively coming back from the dead. John thought he had finally lost it, gone crazy. Then Mrs. Hudson walked in and screamed. John felt he should be angry at Sherlock for leaving him to believe he was dead, yet all he could feel was elation rising up inside of him. He trusted Sherlock and whatever reasons he had for letting people believe he was dead would have to be good, so he forgave him. John looked up and realised he’d made it back to Baker Street, he pulled off the trench coat and let himself inside hanging the coat back in its rightful place.

***  
“Ahh, John! What can you tell me about this address here?”  
“Oh. Umm...Yes! It’s where the wife’s daughter lives”  
“We’re going to talk to her tomorrow”  
“Okay, coffee?”  
“Please.” Sherlock looked over at John in the kitchen still pondering why he would need his coat, where he went with it. He knew John would open up if he wanted to talk about it and after all he had put him through Sherlock thought it’d be better not to question him incessantly. They talked about their days summing up the case. There seemed to be a mutual avoidance on the subject of Sherlock’s death, it was almost as though it had never happened. Except for the occasional glance that John gave Sherlock, as if checking he was still there. Sherlock was sure that would pass in time. John yawned. “Okay, time for bed I guess.” Sherlock said chuckling at John.  
“Hmm, yeah...” He seemed slightly dazed. Sherlock figured he couldn’t be sleeping well.  
“Night John” He walked him to his door.  
“Yes, night Sher- a-a-a-ahhh-lock” John yawned mid sentence and looked at Sherlock one last time before he stumbled into his room. Sherlock wandered up to his own room and sat on the bed, concerned about John. He put the thought to the back of his mind as he delved into the thoughts in his head; slipping in between his covers he began to process the day’s information. He perked up when he heard a noise, but it was just John shuffling about downstairs. He’d check on him in a moment if he stayed up but he heard him walking back into his room and silence consumed the night once more.

***

John had woken up in the middle of the night and after going to get Sherlock’s coat from the hallway he pulled it into his bed next to him, like a blanket. He felt calmed by the scent of Sherlock and stroking the lapel back and forth with his thumb he fell back into a deep sleep.

**Author's Note:**

> I was just going to do this and leave it as a short story but my mind has gotten carried away with itself and come up with a second half. So I've decided to make a Coat Thief: Part 2 as I kind of wanted to leave it up to you guys to imagine the reasoning behind it and whatever. So I'm going to create a separate work and you can choose to read it if you want. 
> 
> Part 2: http://archiveofourown.org/works/855952
> 
> Thanks for reading :3 <3


End file.
